0 comments/ 3499 views/ 3 favorites Rescuing Rachel By: MaxErotic After biology class is dismissed, I walk down the hallway, bumping shoulders with innumerable strangers through the crowds until I arrive at my locker. I open the combination lock and swing the locker door open. I miss the half-empty hallways of my former high school. So far, college is going well but my biggest complaint is the hallways. It's becoming a real problem. I've been late getting to my next class twice already this week, all because of hallway traffic. It's so embarrassing to have to come late, to have to sneak past the professor while all the students bob and weave around my tall figure, trying to see the projected computer screen as they scramble to take notes. I remove my hooded, college-logo sweater and grab a quick sip of ginger ale. I hear familiar voices and peek around my locker door: it's Miles and Rachel. Miles is an old friend. He's not my best friend or even a good friend but he's the friend I have been hanging out with everyday since college started. He was notorious for being a rainy day friend in high school. Whenever I needed someone to talk to he would just disappear with some excuse. This year, he's totally different. He seems to have gotten past the rainy day season he went through. Rachel, on the other hand, has been my obsession since the first day I saw her in fourth grade. I have tried on numerous occasions to express my feelings for her but have chickened out each time. She's too beautiful, too intense, and far too hard to look at in the eyes. If I look her in the eyes, my heart starts racing and I feel sweaty and dizzy. Her eyes are ice blue and are nearly that of a white, Siberian husky. She's definitely not to be compared to a dog but her eyes have that same icy-blue intensity. Her hair is blonde, long and straight and her lips are the colour of a natural rose. Yesterday, she got excited about passing her nursing test and hugged me. I know it was an innocent hug but I can't stop thinking about asking her out ever since. "So, Rachel, how was nursing class?" asks Miles as I listen from behind my locker door. "Good. Boring, but good," answers Rachel. "Rachel, do you find me attractive?" asks Miles frankly and boldly as he puts her in the hot spot. "Well, um, wow! Now there's a surprise question if I've ever heard one. Well, then, yes. I do," admits Rachel equally as boldly. "I was really hoping you would say that. Do you want to go out sometime, Rachel? Say, a restaurant or a movie?" asks Miles, now going for the kill. Rachel looks down and blushes. I can tell that she's uncomfortable. Who wouldn't be, especially after a surprise question like that? I knew that Miles thought she was pretty but how could he do this to me, knowing that I wanted to ask her out? "How about tonight? I was going to hang out with Chuck tonight, but I could just tell him that I'm going on a date with you tonight. He should understand, right? I mean, he's your friend, isn't he?" says Rachel. "I'll let him know. Don't worry about it. I got this. He's a good guy. I think he'll understand. And if he doesn't, then whatever," says Miles, now staring lustfully at Rachel's chest without any decency. My mind begins to race at what I'm seeing and hearing. Does he think he's guaranteed to get it on with her now because he's going on a date with her? Is that what he thinks? Does he think he can just stare at her chest like that and not care what she thinks anymore? So what, now that he's on the inside, she's just a piece of tail? I can't believe I ever trusted him. I can't believe I ever hung out with him. What a creep! I've got to warn Rachel about this guy. My locker is about ten feet away, enough for them to notice me if I slam the locker door. Slam! I slam the locker door shut as hard as I can. "Hey, Chuck!" blurts Miles sarcastically, "We were just talking about you." "I know. I heard everything. Have fun on your date tonight you two," I say, defeated, allowing myself to look pathetic. I can't care anymore; it's too late. I waited too long for Rachel and now some guy, who I thought was my friend, is taking her out. It's my own dumb fault. I should have acted earlier, I tell myself, as I grab my stuff, slam my locker shut again, and click the lock closed. I smile at both of them and they both stare at me, waiting for me to say something else but I just walk away. Miles walks after me down the hallway, leaving Rachel at her locker. "You're not mad at me for asking her out, are you Chuck? It's not like you didn't have your chance. You've been hanging out with her since fourth grade. Why didn't you make a move? Come on, you're the only one to blame, here, Chuck," says Miles as he slaps me hard on the back before walking past me. "Nice friend you are, asshole!" I yell. Miles turns around and gives me the middle finger. Some chicks walk by the scene and scoff at us. I can tell they think I'm pathetic: I'm pretty sure they heard everything Miles said. "This is college, pretty boy," says a thin, tight-jeans redhead. "Fourth grade? Did I hear that correctly? It's time to man up! If you like someone, you've got to make a move. What are you afraid of, rejection?" she says, crossing her arms while staring me down. "You don't understand. It's too late. My friend's taking the girl of my dreams out tonight. It's too late to man up," I confess to the strange redhead girl. She stops walking with her friends and breaks off from the group to approach me. "Chuck, right? Your name is Chuck, isn't it? You hang out with Rachel sometimes, right?" asks the redhead. "Yeah. That's me," I admit, looking away from her as I try to avoid taking this conversation any further. "Rachel's in some of my nursing courses. We hung out at the bar last weekend. She showed me some pictures of her friends on her mobile. You're on the homepage of her phone, you know. I thought you were her boyfriend when she was showing me the pictures. So, she's the one your friend asked out?" asks the redhead, prodding for info. "I'm on her phone? On the home page?" I ask, astonished. "Wow. That must suck to be you. She's a total babe. Go and tell her you have feelings for her. You have to do something. If you really like Rachel, go tell her!" "Tell her? It's too late. Miles is taking her out tonight," I repeat, annoyed that she seems to be ignoring that fact. "Go and tell her, man. You're not on her homepage for nothing. She told me she digs you. She talked a lot about you at the bar last weekend. She kept asking people if you were coming. I think you should talk to her." I stare the redhead in the eyes to evaluate her sincerity. It's nice to finally be able to look a girl in the eyes without feeling awkward. She is very attractive, about five-foot-eight and maybe a hundred and thirty or so pounds. Rachel walks by as I am talking to the redhead and pauses to hear what we're saying before walking on. I watch as she walks on and she looks back to see if I'm still watching. Our eyes meet and she looks offended. I wonder if she's feeling jealous, I ask myself. Good! I hope she is. No, that's not right. I can't let myself hate her, even if she's dating Miles tonight. "Go on, hot shot! Go tell her before it's too late, before Miles makes her his own and they fall in love forever and get married or something like that," says the redhead urgently. I chase after Rachel down the hallway and find her talking to Miles again. I turn around and begin to walk back towards the redhead but Rachel calls out: "Chuck! Hold on. Can I talk to you for a minute?" I hesitate but notice that Miles is leaving for his next class so I remain. "Chuck, listen, I don't want to hurt your feelings. I told Miles that I would go on a date with him tonight instead of hanging out with you. Is that cool? You're not mad at me are you?" asks Rachel, who is now locking up emotionally and bracing herself for what I might say. "Rachel, I've had a crush on you since fourth grade. Every time I had the courage to ask you out I looked you in the eyes and chickened out. I am so crazy about you. I think about you all of the time. I wish I was Miles right now, that it was me taking you out and not Miles. I feel like such a loser for waiting so long. It's fair. Miles deserves to take you out. He was brave. He had the guts to ask you out and he did it, so he's the man, I guess." "No, Chuck, it's not like that. I said yes because I think he's cute, and he asked me out. I would have said yes to you, too, if it was you asking me out." I feel angry inside and find that I am angry enough to look her in the eyes and not retreat. "Have fun, Rachel. I am sorry about all of this. It's probably weird, right, to hear this from me?" "I'm not dumb, Chuck. You don't think that I noticed all the times you tried to ask me out, all the times you couldn't look at me? Well, I did. I like you, Chuck, I like you a lot, a lot more than you think I do, but I'm young, and it's a little awkward now that Miles already asked me out." "I understand. Hey, have fun. I'll always be here if you need to talk. We're still friends, right?" "Of course we are! I could never ditch you, Chuck. You're my best guy friend. You're more than that. Just give me some time, OK. Just give me some time to see how things go with Miles. I don't expect you to wait around or anything but I really like you. It's just one date, what could possibly go wrong? It's not like he's going to kill me or rape me or anything, right? It's innocent." "Well, he could try and sleep with you," I say, concerned for her. "And what's wrong with that? What? A girl can't have a little fun?" Rachel looks offended: I crossed a personal space boundary. "Sorry, just have fun, OK," I say as I walk away, angry that she seems interested in having sex with Miles. If she has sex with Miles, I don't want her. I know that she's a virgin, like me, and if she loses her virginity to Miles, I'll lose her forever. Miles has slept with over ten chicks, or at least that's what he claims. But what if it's true? What if Miles has slept with ten chicks? He could be diseased. If he sleeps with her, she could be diseased. I force myself to change my train of thought and head off to my next class. Once again, I bump shoulders with the multitude of student-loan borrowers and navigate down the halls to my next class. I bump into the redhead again. "So, champ, what did she say?" asks the redhead with a sly smile. "She's still going to go out with Miles. I told her how I felt but she still wants to date Miles. What can I do? I did my best. I was just too late." "Listen, about your friend Miles, he's a total creep. He raped my friend and gave her an STI." "What? Miles did? When?" I ask, baffled at the news. "Last year. He took her to a restaurant, acted respectful, all gentleman-like, and then took her to some abandoned basement and raped her." "Raped her? Didn't she go to the police?" I ask, enraged. "No, she didn't. She was too afraid. I guess he told her that if she told on him that he'd kill her." "Kill her? Are you sure you're talking about the same guy? Miles Manning?" "Positive. We used to hang out together last year, all of us. I tried to help her but she didn't want help. He screwed her up for life. He'll be your friend as long as he's getting something out of it. He just used you to get closer to Rachel. Listen, Chuck, I know he's your friend but you've got to believe me. He's a bastard. Why do you hang out with him?" "I don't know anymore. He's never been a bastard around me. He's never indicated that he's that sort of guy before. Are you totally sure that you're talking about the right guy?" "I swear it's the same guy. You need to help Rachel. Don't let her get fucked by this guy. He's bad news. If you love Rachel, or like her, or whatever, do something!" "I can't. She's already going on a date with him tonight. What do I do?" "We've got to help her. She's in my next class. I'll talk to her about the date, alright?" "Why didn't you say anything before?" I ask, panicking inside and fearing for Rachel. "I couldn't. I don't know you and I didn't want to talk to you or Rachel when Miles was around." "What's your name by the way?" I ask. "It's Lori. I have to go now. Meet me here after class and I'll tell you how it goes." I thank Lori and she heads off to class. I knew I didn't have a good feeling about Miles when I saw him stare at her chest so openly but now, now I hate him. There's no way I'm going to let Miles do anything to hurt Rachel. I hear Miles' voice behind me and I turn around. "Hey, buddy, what's happening? Having a little chit-chat with Lori, are you? The chick's a mess, dude. Don't listen to anything she says. She used to have a crush on me and she's just bitter that I dated her friend, that's all. What'd she say to you anyway?" "She said that you raped her friend, and that you said if she told the police that you'd kill her. You mind explaining this to me, Miles, because I'm really angry with you right now. I feel like kicking your ass! So you better talk fast," I say, my fists clenched as tight as I can make them. "Oh, relax, big guy. It's just some bullshit she made up about me. It's an old lie. It's not the first time she's tried to tell people shit about me either. She's probably just jealous that I'm into Rachel now, that's all." "How does she know you're into Rachel?" I ask with my fists still clenched. "I was at the bar last weekend and Lori and Rachel were there. I asked Rachel to dance and Lori shoved me away from Rachel, said I was bad news and that Rachel should stay away from me. I just brushed it off. Later that night, Rachel apologized for Lori's behaviour. She said that nursing chicks get a little weird when it comes to guys." "So, you and Rachel actually date back to last weekend?" I ask. "No, nothing happened but we started to be interested in each other around that time. All week, we've been eyeing each other in the hallways, so finally I just asked her out." "I thought you said you didn't do anything last weekend. I called you to ask if you were going out on Friday and you said 'No'. So, you did go out? You lied to me, Miles, you flat out lied to me." I clench my fists again. "Look, Rachel's hot. I'm into her. Once I get some of that sweet pussy, I'm over it, it's all yours dude. She's not my type, I just want her body." I grab Miles by the collar with both hands and shove him backwards. He charges at me, driving me into the lockers behind me. I punch and connect with a right hook on his left temple, he drops to the ground. "Jeez!" yells Miles, holding the side of his head, "What the hell, man? Rachel's just some bitch. Fuck! If you really want her that bad, then have her. I'll find some other pussy to fuck, OK? We're friends, man, aren't we? Let's not let a chick get in the way of that. I'll just tell her that I changed my mind. Peace?" Miles stretches his hand out to shake mine. I do the brotherly friend thing and pull him up off of the ground. He dusts himself off and carries on. A crowd formed while we were fighting. They watch for a moment and then shrug their shoulders before returning to their hallway chatter. I head off to the library to finish my group project and turn my laptop on. There's a message from Rachel: Chuck, I'll behave tonight, you can trust me. I'm sorry if I came across like a slut earlier. I don't just screw guys on the first date. I know I came across like that, sorry. Friends? Friends, I reply. I want to say more to her but it seems that a single word suffices. I finish my work for the project and pack up my laptop. I head back to meet Lori and see her waiting in the hallway when I get there. "So?" I ask, waiting for her to respond. "It went well. She heard me out. She was pretty disappointed, though. I think she was really looking forward to going out with him. She won't now. She knows he's bad news." "I am so glad you talked to her, Lori. I got into a fight with him in the hallway. Either he's different than he used to be or he's always been a creep and I just didn't know it." "Wow. You got into a fight with him?" asks Lori, eager to hear about it. "Sort of, I pushed him and then he pushed me back. I punched him once and it was over." "Good for you, Chuck. Maybe he'll leave Rachel alone now. Rachel said she'd meet me here. She'll be here any minute now." Lori and I talk about odd things concerning college life and we find that we have a lot in common: we both have huge student loans and two little brothers. She played indoor soccer on alternating nights to me as the men and women play on different nights. She seems really cool. Rachel approaches us: "Hey, Chuck. Hey Lori. How's everything going?" "Not good," I confess. "I got into a fight with Miles. He kept saying belittling things about you. All he wanted was sex. He doesn't care about you. You know that now, right?" "I know. It's for the better. I was really hoping to wear my new dress. My mom took me to Bryan's and bought me this great dress last week. Oh well, it's OK," says Rachel, disappointed. "I'd be happy to take you out instead, if you're into that, that is," I offer, hoping with all of my heart that she says yes. "OK. I'm up for that. That's sweet but you don't have to do this to make up for what happened, Chuck." "No. I want to. I really want to. I should have asked you years ago." Lori raises her eyebrows at Rachel, indicating that she thinks Rachel is lucky to be getting asked out by me. I feel flattered by Lori's gesture and notice that my ego is slightly boosted. "You're a lucky woman, Rachel. I wish that I had a date tonight," says Lori with a subtle hint of jealousy. "There's always Miles," jokes Rachel. "I'd like to stay alive, thank you," jokes Lori in return. We all talk for a while before Lori leaves the conversation to go home. Rachel reaches out and grabs my left hand. I can feel her warm, tender palm rest on mine and my heart begins to race. She smiles at me and steps closer. She reaches for my other hand and does the same. She looks up at me and lets out a giggle. She sighs, and hugs her head into my chest. I hold her tight and gently caress her long, blonde hair. "I don't know what got into me, Chuck. I just felt so horny around him. It's like he's got some sort of lust-energy on him or something. It's weird. You don't hate me, do you?" "No, I don't hate you," I assure Rachel, "never! You mean so much to me. I could never hate you. I was worried about you, that's all." "You didn't know he was like that?" asks Rachel. "You didn't know that Miles was all about sex?" "I didn't know. He always seemed like a nice guy but it's hard to tell with people sometimes. When he started telling me that you were just sex to him, I lost it, and went after him." "You did that because you care that much about me?" asks Rachel, looking up into my eyes. I stare into Rachel's ice-blue eyes. I swallow hard, nervously, wanting to kiss her on the lips but slow myself down. Is it too soon? No. It's now or never. I push aside my fears of rejection and lean closer to Rachel, to kiss her, and she leans closer to me; our lips just about touch when I'm slapped on the back. "See you later, losers!" yells Miles, his back now toward us, walking down the hallway, fingering us with both hands. "Real nice, Miles!" yells Rachel as she fingers him back. Miles disappears from the hallway through the crowds and Rachel pulls me back to where we were. She puts her arm around my neck and pulls me down to her lips, kissing me passionately. I place my arms around her and we French kiss, our passion for each other finally unleashed: eight years of developed feelings, of heartfelt friendship, of painful distance, now completed by the touching of our tongues, by the pressing of our lips, the seal of our identity as a couple. Rescuing Rachel Rachel and I finish kissing and she places her head against my chest once again. "I can hear your heart, Chuck," says Rachel as she stares at her watch, timing it. "It's healthy, too, very regular. We just learned this in nursing." Rachel grabs her things from her locker and we hold hands as she tells me all about her nursing course and how she's learning about the heart. I surprise Rachel, telling her that I think it would be fun to book a dancing lesson. My mom knows a Spanish dance instructor who takes drop-in students. Rachel is thrilled at my idea and I book the lesson. She can't wait to wear her new dress. At 6:30 pm, I pick up Rachel at her house and we drive to the dance hall. Rachel and I dance and dance, clumsily of course, but we dance with each other like lovers, like the young lovers that we are, unashamed of our new love. With every touch, we express worlds of meaning to each other as eight years of love unfold, little by little and kiss by kiss. Rachel and I fall more deeply in love with every passing minute. I drop her off around 11:00 pm, thank her for the most amazing night of my life, and kiss her goodnight before driving home. The next morning we meet at the college early to hit the cafeteria before class. Lori spots us and comes up to us. "Did you guys hear what happened last night?" Rachel and I look at Lori and shake our heads. We have no idea what she is talking about. "You didn't hear? Oh, God, it's horrible. It's all over the news. You didn't hear?" "We were out dancing last night," says Rachel. "Why, what happened?" "It's Miles. He's dead. He went out with a girl from the college last night. Apparently, he raped her and then killed her before killing himself." "Oh, God!" yells Rachel, falling back into her chair from emotion and breaking into tears. "What? And I was going to go out with him last night! Oh, God." Rachel puts her hands over her face and begins to cry heavily for fear of what might have been. I hold Rachel in my arms and rock her gently. "You're with me and Lori, Rachel. Everything's OK," I say, trying to console her. Lori bends down and helps me comfort Rachel. Eventually, Rachel is able to stop crying and to stand up again. "So how did he kill her?" I ask Lori. "He diced her up. It's horrible. It's unspeakable." A few weeks later, I walk Rachel to her locker and along the way we pass by Miles' old locker. Someone has spray-painted 'date killer' in red paint on his locker. There's a corner of a piece of paper sticking out of it, protruding through the thin crack at the bottom of the locker. As though in a trance, I walk over to the locker, pull out the piece of paper and look at it. I read the note silently: Rachel, Rachel, You're too late Tonight you'll die on our first date I'll taste you first before I try And try I must until you die And as for Chuck, He's just too late Tonight you'll die on our first date "What does it say, Chuck?" asks Rachel. I read the note out loud to Rachel. "Oh God!" she says, putting her hands up over her mouth. "I'm so glad I'm alright, Chuck," she says as she runs over to hug me. From that day on, Rachel and I never used the words 'mile' or 'miles'. We would say things instead like 'how many kilometres?' or 'we've been walking for ages' or 'that company is light-years ahead of their competition' but we would never say 'miles'.